The invention is related to Internet protocol (IP) telephony systems that allow users to place and receive telephone calls, and to send and receive text and video messages via data packets that are communicated over a data network.
When a call is established between an IP telephony device and an IP telephony system, the audio of the call is carried by data packets that traverse a data network. The speed at which the data packets are delivered, packet loss, jitter and various other data packet transmission statistics can affect the perceived call quality. For this reason, methods of monitoring and tracking data packet transmission statistics have been devised.
By monitoring data packet transmission statistics, an IP telephony system can predict call quality. If an IP telephony system knows that a first data transmission path does not typically have good data packet transmission statistics, which would indicate that call quality is likely to be poor, the IP telephony system can act to send data packets via an alternate path having better data packet transmission statistics.
More recently, IP telephony systems have been conducting IP based telephone calls with mobile telephony devices. The mobile telephony devices could include cells phones, and mobile computing devices which are capable of establishing a wireless data connection to a data network. While the same data packet transmission problems can also affect the quality of IP calls to such mobile telephony devices, the mobile telephony devices also have other sources of call quality problems unrelated to data packet transmissions.
For example, the voltage level or strength of the battery in a mobile telephony device can impact the perceived call quality. Likewise, background noise that is being picked up by the microphone of a mobile telephony device can impact call quality. Similarly, the setting of a microphone of a mobile telephony device can impact call quality. Further, if a mobile telephony device is communicating data packets bearing the call via a data channel provided by a cellular service provider, the signal strength of the cellular connection can impact call quality. Also, in some instances, the use of a hands-free speaker and microphone on a mobile device, which is now quite common, can impact call quality.
Presently, there is no way for an IP telephony system to acquire information about these additional sources of call quality problems that are encountered by mobile telephony devices. As a result, when a customer complains about the quality of calls conducted over a mobile telephony device, the customer service representatives of an IP telephony system will not know if the perceived call quality problems were the result of data packet transmission problems, or one of these alternate sources of call quality problems. Further, because it is impossible to collect information about these sources of call quality problems, it is difficult or impossible to provide useful advice to the caller about how call quality could be improved.